Psalm 91:1 - “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”
THE SECRET PLACE IS A PLACE OF DWELLING
True spiritual power extends deeper than the authority we have been given in Christ Jesus, as it flows from a life that has learned to dwell with God. This is the secret place, a holy place, a sacred place of communion and intimacy with Him. While we may encounter God in our local church, our bedroom, or a quiet corner of our home, the secret place reaches deeper than any physical location.
These spaces can become precious environments where we seek His presence, but the true secret place is found within a life that abides in Him. Spiritually speaking, I think of it as the garden of God’s heart, that intimate place where we draw near to Him, rest in His presence, hear His heart, and experience the beautiful reality of abiding in Him as He abides in us.
Jesus in John 15:4 said, “Abide in Me, and I in you”. The secret place is more than visiting God occasionally; it is learning to remain in Him.
ACCESS THROUGH JESUS CHRIST
However, the secret place of God can only be accessed through Jesus Christ. This access was made possible when our Lord Jesus died on the cross and the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, as read in Matthew 27:50-51. That moment signified something extraordinary; through the sacrifice of Christ, those who believe in Him now have direct access to the presence of God.
Hebrews 10:19-22 tells us that we can enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus and draw near to God with a true heart in full assurance of faith. Ephesians 2:18 also declares, “For through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”
Just as Adam walked with God in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day, through Christ we have been given access to walk and talk with God our Father. Yet God is calling us into something deeper than occasional communion. He desires that we dwell with Him.
When we look at the word translated dwells in Psalm 91:1, we find the Hebrew word yāshab (יָשַׁב), which carries the meaning of to sit, remain, inhabit, abide, or dwell. From this we can see that this is not the language of someone rushing into God's presence only when trouble comes. It speaks of residence, permanence, and abiding.
PSALM 91 IS MORE THAN A PRAYER OF PROTECTION
Oftentimes, we quote Psalm 91 when we pray, engage in spiritual warfare, or face danger. We may even repeat it almost like a creed without fully understanding or practicing what it means to dwell in God.
But when we read and study Psalm 91 in its entirety, we discover that its promises are connected to relationship. God promises His presence, protection, deliverance, refuge, and salvation to the one who makes Him their dwelling place.
Psalm 91 is therefore more than a protection Scripture to recite. It is an invitation into the ideal way of life through God.
THE SHADOW OF THE ALMIGHTY: A CHILDHOOD DREAM
I remember that, as a young child, I received a vivid dream. In the dream, I was looking through the window of the house where my family and I lived. As I gazed at the surrounding trees in the neighborhood, something was different.
Instead of the ordinary fruit trees that existed there in real life, I saw beautiful poui trees blossoming with pink and others with pure white flowers, surrounding the entire neighborhood. There were no houses or other structures, only the trees and a noticable silence.
Then suddenly, on the ground, I saw the enormous shadow of a giant eagle. It was huge. Even in the dream, I sensed that this eagle was gigantic. I looked upward into the clear, vibrant blue sky, yet I could neither see nor hear it. Nevertheless, at that age in the dream, a deep reverential fear and awe came upon me. I was not afraid, but I somehow knew that this gigantic eagle was watching over me.
As a child, I did not understand the meaning of what I had seen. Many years later, at the beginning of January 2019, while commuting to work in a taxi, I suddenly became deeply aware of the presence of God the Father. For a brief moment, I saw a vision of a gigantic white eagle flying over one lone poui tree, its branches completely covered with pure white blossoms.
The presence and awareness of God were so strong that I could hardly contain what I was experiencing. Then, while sitting in that taxi, I suddenly remembered the childhood dream, of the gigantic eagle, its shadow, and the surrounding poui trees.
And it dawned on me. What I had experienced as a child represented, to me, the protective covering of God Almighty. I remembered the awe I had felt in the dream, and memories began flooding my mind. I remembered the hand of God over my life as a child. I remembered how He had preserved me from death from my mother's womb. I remembered demonic attacks I had encountered and how He protected me.
I remembered His hand over my life when robbers took the vehicle in which my father and I were travelling. I remembered the unusual favour I received from teachers at school – people who may not even have realized that what they were responding to was the grace of God upon my life. One memory after another came back to me. The Lord had been watching over me all along.
Sitting there in that taxi, overwhelmed by His presence and the realization of His faithfulness, I made a vow in my heart that I would dwell more deeply with God. What I did not know was what that decision would require of me.
However, the year 2019 became one of the most difficult years I had encountered. There were trials, warfare, painful circumstances, and the testing of my faith and trust in the Lord. Yet it was also a year of transition, and a doorway into a new season of spiritual growth, maturity, consecration, and authority.
Sometimes the decision to go deeper with God does not immediately lead into ease. Sometimes it leads us through the refining fire. For scripture in James 4:8 declares, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”
FROM HIS SHADOW TO HIS HEART
I share all of this because I want you to consider something. If there is such tremendous protective power in abiding under the shadow of the Almighty, taking refuge beneath His wings and being covered by His feathers, how much more should we desire to dwell close to and in His heart?
The heart of God is sacred. It is not a place we casually enter while deliberately continuing to walk according to the ways of the world. We cannot desire intimacy with a holy God while refusing the transforming work of His Spirit in our character.
To dwell in the heart of God means embracing consecration. It means allowing Him to purify us from the defilement of the world. It means bearing the fruit of the Spirit as seen in Galatians 5:22–23: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self-control. It means pursuing a life that is increasingly surrendered and separated unto the Lord.
Hebrews 12:14 declares to pursue “holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.”
WHAT PSALM 91 REVEALS ABOUT THE DWELLER
An entire study could be written on Psalm 91 alone. But as we continue through the Psalm, we begin to see what God promises to the person who makes Him their dwelling place. These promises should never be treated as a magical formula.
They demonstrate the security, presence, faithfulness, and covenant care of God toward those who trust and abide in Him.
Psalm 91 shows us that:
1. You are delivered from the snare of the fowler and from perilous pestilence – God is able to expose and deliver you from hidden traps, schemes, and dangers prepared by the enemy.
2. His truth becomes your shield and buckler – When lies, slander, false accusations, and even the accusations of the enemy arise against you, God's truth becomes your defence.
3. You do not have to live unsettled, shaken, or afraid of the terror by night or the arrow that flies by day – The plots, schemes, attacks, and threats of the enemy do not have to govern your heart through fear.
4. You do not have to be controlled by fear of pestilence or destruction – Even when calamity, disease, sudden destruction, or national upheaval surrounds you, your confidence can remain anchored in God.
5. Though a thousand fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, the forces arrayed against you will not ultimately prevail over the purposes of God for your life.
6. You may live to witness the righteous judgment of God against wickedness – God sees what is done in secret, and vengeance belongs to Him.
7. Because you have made the Lord your refuge and the Most High your habitation, you can entrust your life and household to His keeping.
8. God gives His angels charge concerning you – He can assign His angels to accompany, guard, defend, and preserve you according to His will and purpose.
9. You are given authority over the forces of darkness represented by the lion, the adder, the young lion, and the serpent – In Christ, we do not have to live beneath the dominion of the enemy. Jesus also declared in Luke 10:19 that He gives His people authority over the power of the enemy.
Yet all of this flows from dwelling in God, rather than simply dwelling near Him, but loving Him. So then this brings us to a deeply personal question: Do you love God? Do you spend time with Him, not just asking Him for something, but simply because you desire Him? Do you have a personal and intimate knowledge of Him, and do you know His heart?
Psalm 91 from verses 14 then continues. When we set our love upon Him:
10. He promises deliverance in times of trouble.
11. He sets us on high because we know His name – There is something powerful about knowing God past information, and that is knowing His character, His ways, His faithfulness, and His heart.
12. When we call upon Him, He answers and remains with us in trouble – And consider the wonder of the next statement: the God whom we honour declares that He will also honour us.
13. In Psalm 91:16, He promises the satisfaction of long life and the revelation of His salvation.
THE SECRET PLACE IS A LIFESTYLE
My friends, dwelling in the secret place of God is goes past spending fifteen minutes, thirty minutes, or even an hour in prayer. It is a lifestyle. It is a life of continual fellowship with God, even as we move through our daily responsibilities, work, family life, ministry, and even as we rest. It is a covenant life of abiding.
We have been granted access through Christ, but the secret place should never be approached casually while we deliberately cling to unrepentant sin, bitterness, unforgiveness, pride, or mistrust toward God. The invitation is free, but intimacy demands surrender.
Jesus said in John 14:23, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.”
God wants to make His home with us.
WHEN CALLING BECOMES MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE ONE WHO CALLED YOU
Many believers have become intensely focused on their calling, their spiritual gifts, the offices they believe they are called to operate in, their platforms, their ministries, and how well known they might become within Christendom, or what I call Christian city.
But what value is a platform if we lose the secret place? What value is a gift if we become strangers to the Giver? And what value is being known by people if we neglect being known intimately by God?
The sons of Korah , who in their day approached God through the physical tabernacle, declared in Psalm 84:10, “For a day in Thy courts is better than a thousand; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
Today, through Christ, we are invited into something profound. We are called to dwell in the tabernacle of God's presence, and to make our home in His heart, and Him in yours.
GIVE HIM EVERYTHING
To live there requires complete surrender. Come before God with your past, present, and future, and place before Him your besetting sins, the seemingly petty sins you have excused, your failures, shame, successes, victories, accomplishments, grief, pain, thoughts, feelings, fears, emotions, plans, ambitions, and even your time. Give Him everything!
Romans 12:1 calls us to present our bodies as “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God.” The secret place is entered through grace, but dwelling there teaches us the beauty of surrender.
BE PREPARED TO GUARD THE SECRET PLACE
Know this also, that when you make a genuine decision to give everything to God and draw closer to Him, distractions will come, trials may arise, and temptations may intensify. Spiritual opposition would also attempt to redirect your attention away from the very One you have decided to pursue. So be watchful and vigilant.
There is something indescribably beautiful about sensing God's presence, hearing His voice, walking with Him, and knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that He is near. At times, you may even experience what many describe using the Hebrew word Kabod, which is the weight, glory, or overwhelming awareness of God's presence. But this is where we must be careful.
When God allows us to experience His presence in a profound way, we can become so fascinated with the feeling of His presence and the sense of spiritual empowerment it brings that we forget why He drew us near in the first place.
Such experiences should cause us to remain humble, steadfast, and fixed in Him. The presence of God is never a trophy to possess or display, it is an invitation to draw closer, surrender more deeply, and continue abiding in Him.
WHEN I FAILED TO REMAIN IN THE SECRET PLACE
My own experience with the weight of God's presence became a plea to go deeper. Yet when I began facing an onslaught of trials of attacks involving my family, finances, and other areas of my life, I did not always remain where God was calling me to remain. I became too focused on what the enemy was doing, preoccupied with fighting, and being on the defense.
I prayed, I warred, and I watched what was happening around me. But somewhere in the battle, I lost sight of what was essential and it was that I needed to remain dwelling in God.
You see, there is a difference between constantly fighting the enemy and abiding in the One who has already defeated him. Eventually, the Lord began showing me areas that needed to change. There were certain toxic people from whom I needed to separate myself. There were habits I needed to release, and there were things that had occupied too much of my attention and affection.
When I acknowledged these things before God and repented, I began to see His hand move on my behalf. He removed friendships that were dangerous and toxic. He gave me a stronger resolve to serve Him, and He began working on my behalf in ways I had not anticipated. And once again, He began revealing His presence in my life.
The lesson became clear: The battle must never become greater in our eyes than the God in whom we dwell. Isaiah 26:3 declares, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”
WHY TRADE HIS PRESENCE FOR THE WORLD?
To this day, whether I am at home, at church, commuting to work, or sitting at my desk, I am often conscious of His presence, and that is the weight and awareness of God with me and in me. Do you understand what this means?
Imagine living with an awareness that wherever you go, God is with you. Imagine seeing His favour unfold in unexpected ways. Imagine watching needs being met according to His providence, receiving divine direction, experiencing His intervention, and encountering Him through dreams, visions, Scripture, prayer, and the quiet whisper of His Spirit.
Why would we sacrifice intimacy with God for the temporary things of this world; for accolades, recognition, popularity, the endless pursuit of money, applause, or platforms? Why spend our lives chasing after the wind and building sandcastles on earth that can be washed away by the tides of life?
Jesus asked one of the most sobering questions in Mark 8:36: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” Nothing this world offers can compare with knowing God.
GUARD THE TEMPLE
I implore you, my fellow saints, live pure and holy before God. Do not willingly allow defiling things to take residence in the temple that belongs to Him. Remember 1 Corinthians 6:19 which declares, “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you?”
Pay attention to what you watch, how much time you spend scrolling through social media, the conversations you participate in, and the words that come out of your mouth. Guard the emotions you continually entertain and the thoughts you allow to take root in your heart.
This is about living past religious fear and valuing the presence of God so deeply that we become careful about what we allow to compete with Him.
HIDE IN THE SECRET PLACE
We are living in perilous times. More than ever, the people of God need to know how to dwell in Him and hide in the secret place. Hiding in God means we recognize that He is our refuge and understand where we belong. The secret place is where we should already be dwelling before the battle begins, rather than retreating there only when warfare intensifies.
David understood this in Psalm 27:5 when he wrote:
“For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me.”
WHAT ARE YOU WILLING TO SACRIFICE?
So I ask you, what are you willing to sacrifice to dwell there? My dear friend, whatever continually keeps you away from the heart of God will eventually have to be yielded.
Remember, you were known in the heart of God before anyone on earth ever knew your name. He saw you before you entered this world. He knew the days appointed for you before you lived one of them. Psalm 139:13-16 declares:
“For You formed my inward parts; You knitted me together in my mother's womb.
I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are Your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in Your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”
RETURNING TO THE GARDEN OF GOD'S HEART
All God desires is that we return to Him, to His heart. This has been His desire from the beginning. After Adam and Eve sinned and fellowship was broken, God already had a redemptive plan. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the way was opened for humanity to be reconciled to Him.
Jesus died for far more than simply giving us blessings and saving our souls. He died to reconcile us to the Father and bring us home, to His presence, to fellowship with Him, to the heart of God, and, spiritually speaking, back to the garden of God’s heart.
And we must understand this that the secret place is not somewhere we enter casually for the purpose of obtaining spiritual power. It is not where we go so that we can acquire gifts to display before others. It is not a place to pursue supernatural experiences so that we can boast that we hear God better than someone else.
The secret place is where you go because you want Him, to enjoy His company, know His heart, hear what matters to Him, sit with Him, and love Him. Think about it this way. How would you feel if your spouse or someone you deeply loved only approached you when they wanted something? What if they showed little interest in spending time with you, knowing your heart, hearing your thoughts, or simply enjoying your company, but appeared immediately whenever they needed a favour? Would that feel like love?
GOD WANTS YOUR COMPANY
Do you know that God wants your company? Do you know that He desires a relationship with you? Do you understand that this is what dwelling in the secret place is really about?
And here is the beautiful news, you need not wait until you are in a good mood before you come. There is no need to wait for the perfect day, room, or atmosphere. You simply need to come through Jesus Christ with a sincere heart. As long as we live and breathe upon this earth, we are invited to live in fellowship with God.
Too often, when we face trials, disappointment, painful emotions, a foul mood, failure, or an unsettling experience, our instinct is to withdraw from God. Yet those are often the very moments when we should run toward Him.
Bring your frustration, questions, disappointment, tears, and the things you do not understand to God. Bring Him even the parts of your heart you are ashamed to show anyone else. He already knows, and He is a good Father who loves His children. You do not have to hide your heart from the One who formed it.
So come into His presence, into fellowship, into the secret place, and into the garden of His heart. When you come, do not only visit; dwell there, remain there, and abide there. For the greatest treasure of the secret place is not protection, power, spiritual gifts, visions, favour, or even deliverance. The greatest treasure of the secret place is God Himself.
CLOSING PRAYER: A COVENANT TO DWELL IN THE SECRET PLACE
Father, I come before You in the name of Jesus Christ with a humble and repentant heart. Search me and reveal anything within me that has grieved Your Spirit or drawn me away from Your presence. Forgive me for every sin, wrong attitude, distraction, unbelief, unforgiveness, misplaced affection, and every time I have desired Your hand more than Your heart. Wash me, cleanse me, and create in me a clean heart. Remove whatever competes with my devotion to You, and help me to walk in holiness, humility, obedience, and truth.
Today, I surrender my life completely to You; my past, present, future, plans, desires, relationships, family, finances, calling, gifts, fears, disappointments, and every part of who I am. Let Your will be greater than my own, and give me grace to release anything that hinders me from walking closely with You.
Lord, I dedicate myself anew to dwelling in Your secret place. I do not want to seek You only in times of trouble, but to abide in You daily and make Your presence the atmosphere of my life. Teach me to know Your heart, love Your Word, recognize Your voice, and remain faithful whether I feel Your presence strongly or must simply walk by faith.
Most High God, I choose You as my refuge and my dwelling place. Keep my heart from distraction, pride, fear, and the temporary attractions of this world. When trials come, help me to remain focused on You rather than becoming consumed by the battle. Purify my heart and make my life a habitation for Your presence.
Father, by Your grace, I choose to dwell, remain, and abide in You. May my greatest desire never be only what You can give me, but to know You, love You, walk with You, and remain close to Your heart all the days of my life.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
Author: Kimberly A.S. Williams